UN chief condemns killing of seven peacekeepers in DRC

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has condemned the killing of seven peacekeepers serving in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is also confronting a lethal Ebola outbreak.

Guterres said in a statement that one Tanzanian and six Malawian ‘blue helmets’ were killed during joint operations carried out by the UN stabilization mission (MONUSCO) and the Government’s forces on Wednesday.

He stated that “initial reports indicate that ten additional peacekeepers were wounded and another one missing,” expressing concern at the violence uptick in the crisis-torn country prior to elections. The UN chief expressed deepest sympathy and heartfelt condolences to the peacekeepers’ families and the Malawian and Tanzanian Governments and their people.

Guterres called on armed groups to stop the destabilising activities that continued to add to the population’s suffering and further complicated the Ebola response and urged them to disarm immediately.